Birth Name:
Lucille Francis Ryan
Nick Name:
Unco, short for Uncoordinated
Date of Birth:
March 29, 1968
Place of Birth:
Mount Albert, Auckland, New Zealand
Height: 5' 10 1/2"
Biography:
Best known for her role as the fearsome Xena: Warrior Princess in the
long-running series of the same name, athletic worldly beauty Lucy Lawless
didn't achieve the fame in her native New Zealand that flooded her in the
U.S. until much later in her career, due to the fact that the wildly popular
adventure series didn't air there until long after it was a staple of American
television. Born into water at her home in Mount Albert, Aukland,
New Zealand, in 1968 to the mayor of that city, Lucy began acting early
and frequently appeared in school plays in her youth. She was the 5th of
7 children, of Frank and Julie Ryan. An active child of diverse interests,
Lucy went on to study German, French, and Italian at Aukland University
for a year before traveling through Europe with boyfriend and eventual
first husband Garth Lawless. They worked odd jobs to finance their trip
and eventually ending up in Australia. Working in a gold-mining camp
in Kalgoorlie to finance the final leg of their journey, the couple was
married in Australia in 1988 and soon returned home to bear a daughter,
Daisy. Crowned Mrs. New Zealand the following year, the busy new
mother got her first acting experience in Funny Business, a popular TV
comedy troupe after she did a "really bad, cheesy commercial for travel."
After studying acting in Vancouver, Canada, at the William Davis Center
for Actors Study, Lucy soon landed small roles in films and television,
with her next regular job as of co-host on television's Air New Zealand
Holiday. After appearing in The Rainbow Warrior in 1992, Lucy landed
the role that would propel her to stardom and become her calling card into
the new millennium. Initially appearing in the role of Lysia in Hercules
and the Amazon Women, Lucy went on to appear as Xena in three episodes
of Hercules before spinning off into her own series in 1995. It was
a physically demanding adventure series in which the sporty actress performed
many of her own stunts. Lucy broke her pelvis after falling off of
a horse while preparing to make a grand entrance on The Tonight Show With
Jay Leno in 1996. After a quick recovery, Lucy Lawless made her Broadway
debut as Rizzo in Grease the following year. In 1997, she was chosen
by "People" magazine as one of the 50 Most Beautiful People in the World.
She divorced her first husband in 1995 and married Xena producer Rob Tapert
in Santa Monica, California on March 28, 1998. On October 16, 1999,
they had a son, Julius Robert Bay Tapert, born in New Zealand. "Xena"
has been canceled after a fantastic 6-year run. In November 2001,
Lucy announced that she is pregnant with her third child, due in April
2002.
Filmography:
Spider-Man (2002)
"The X Files" (2001) TV Series ..as "Shannon
McMahon" in episode: "Nothing Important Happened Today II" (episode # 9.2)
"Nothing Important Happened Today" (episode # 9.1)
"Xena: Warrior Princess" (1995-2001) TV
Series ..as Xena, Meg, Princess Diana, Melinda Pappas, Priestess Leah
Dealing with Donna (2001)
Lucy Lawless: Kiwi Superstar (2001) (TV)
..as Herself/Xena
"Just Shoot Me" (2001) TV Series ..as "Stacy"
in episode: "The Auction" (episode # 5.14)
In Search of the Lonesome Yodel (2000)
(TV) ..as Herself
Ginger Snaps (2000) (uncredited) (voice)
..as Announcer on School's PA System
"The Simpsons" (1999) TV Series ..as "Herself"(voice)
in episode: "Treehouse of Horror X" (episode # 11.4)
Burt Bacharach: One Amazing Night (1999)
(V)
I'll Make You Happy (1999)
Hercules and Xena - The Animated Movie: The Battle
for Mount Olympus (1998) (V) (voice) ..as Xena
"Hercules: The Legendary Journeys" (1995-1998)
TV Series ..as "Xena" in episode: "Armageddon Now: Part 2" (episode # 4.14)
"Stranger In A Strange World" (episode # 4.5) "Judgement Day" (episode
# 3.15) "The Unchained Heart" (episode # 1.13) "The Gauntlet" (episode
# 1.12) "The Warrior Princess" (episode # 1.9) ..as "Lyla" in episode:
"Outcast" (episode # 2.5) "As Darkness Falls" (episode # 1.6)
"Something So Right" (1997) TV Series ..as
"Herself" in episode: "Something About Inter-Ex-Spousal Relations" (episode
# 1.23)
Peach (1995) ..as Peach
"High Tide" (1995) TV Series ..as "Sharon
List" in episode: "Dead In the Water" (episode # 1.17) ..as "undercover
policewoman" in episode: "Shanghied" (episode # 1.8)
Hercules and the Amazon Women (1994) (TV)
..as Lysia
Typhon's People (1993) (TV) ..as Mink Tertius
"The Ray Bradbury Theatre" (1992) TV Series
..as "Liddy Barton" in episode: "Fee Fie Foe Fum" (episode # 6.13)
"The Black Stallion" (1992) TV Series ..as
"Sarah McFee" in episode: "Riding the Volcano"
The Rainbow Warrior (1992) ..as Jane Redmond
... aka The Sinking of the Rainbow Warrior (1992)
"For the Love of Mike" (1991) TV Series
..as Helen
The End of the Golden Weather (1991)
..as Joe's Girl
A Bitter Song (1990) ..as Nurse 1
Within the Law (1990) ..as Verity
"Funny Business" (1987) TV Series ..as
Various (1989)
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